LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION honoring Bernell K. Grier upon the occasion of
her appointment as CEO of the Neighborhood Housing Services of NYC

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to recognize and
commend individuals whose professional commitment and dedication have
enhanced the quality of life in their community and the great State of
New York; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern and fully in accord with its long-
standing traditions, it is the intent of this Legislative Body to honor
Bernell K. Grier upon the occasion of her appointment as CEO of the
Neighborhood Housing Services of NYC on Tuesday, May 4, 2010; and
WHEREAS, Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City, Inc. (NHSNYC)
serves the metropolitan area of New York City; in addition to providing
services throughout New York City, it is a community-based organization
with targeted impact in the following Neighborhoods: Bedford-Stuyvesant,
East Flatbush, North Bronx, Northern Queens, South Bronx and Staten
Island; and
WHEREAS, Through financial empowerment and affordable lending, NHS
enables individuals and families to invest in, preserve and improve
their Neighborhoods, their Homes and their Future; NHS is a HUD-approved
housing counseling agency, a NeighborWorks Chartered organization, a
National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling program (NFMC) grantee and a
program partner of the Center for New York City Neighborhoods (CNYCN);
and
WHEREAS, Bernell K. Grier joined NHSNYC in 2004 as its Chief Operating
Officer; prior to joining NHSNYC, she enjoyed a 30-year career in bank-
ing beginning at Chase and spanning through Bank of America and its
predecessor banks, NatWest USA and Fleet Bank; and
WHEREAS, At Fleet, Bernell K. Grier successfully launched the
67-branch Fleet Community Bank network in New York and New Jersey and
served as the Director of Community Development for New York, New Jersey
and parts of Florida; in this capacity, she worked across the bank's
small business, mortgage lending, real estate and philanthropic founda-
tion units to ensure the bank's compliance with the United States Commu-
nity Reinvestment Act, which resulted in outstanding CRA ratings; and
WHEREAS, Before that, Bernell K. Grier spent the majority of her bank-
ing career in commercial middle market lending before transitioning into
the field of Community Development in 1995; and
WHEREAS, Bernell K. Grier's wealth of management experience and strong
background in the financial industry has been a critical asset for help-
ing NHSNYC steer through the economic crisis; she has earned a reputa-
tion as a stellar team-builder across the neighborhood offices and
brought an important business discipline to its activities; and
WHEREAS, Bernell K. Grier has the ability to cultivate collaborative
relationships with both community and industry partners; she has truly
proven her leadership and longstanding commitment to underserved commu-
nities; and
WHEREAS, Parallel to her career in the banking industry, Bernell K.
Grier has more than 20 years of experience serving low-income communi-
ties and volunteering with a variety of not-for-profit organizations;
most recently, she traveled to South Africa to work with Emmanuel
Baptist Church, Brooklyn in developing a community resource center in
the Wintervelt area; and
WHEREAS, Bernell K. Grier's very first job at the young age of 14 was
as a community organizer, where she helped Harlem residents fight
against illegal evictions; and

WHEREAS, Bernell K. Grier was recently appointed to the advisory board
of the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York; currently, she serves on the
advisory board of the New York University Furman Center for Real Estate
and Public Policy, on the board of Neighborhood Restore, and serves on
various committees with the National NeighborWorks Association (NNA);
and
WHEREAS, Bernell K. Grier is a graduate of the City University of New
York, City College, as well as both the James A. Johnson Community Lead-
ers Program and the NeighborWorks/Harvard Achieving Excellence Program
class of 2010; and
WHEREAS, Bernell K. Grier has received numerous awards for career and
community service, including the 2006 Career Achievement Award by the
City College of New York Business Alumni Association and the New York
Women's Agenda STAR in 2001; in addition, she is a Partnership for NYC
David Rockefeller Fellow class of 2000; and
WHEREAS, NeighborWorks America awarded NHS with the 2009 Top Producer
Award for being number 1 in the network for Direct Investment into the
community; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that when individ-
uals of such noble aims and accomplishments are brought to our atten-
tion, they should be celebrated and recognized by all the citizens of
the great State of New York; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor Bernell K. Grier upon the occasion of her appointment as CEO of
the Neighborhood Housing Services of NYC; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Bernell K. Grier.